the summer of 1993 ── dohwa baek

── i. the daughter

"Say cheese!"

No.

"Come on, girl.... smile a little!"

Another big, fat tear droplet tumbled down Y/N's cheek as she faced the camera with an artificial grin, her bottom lip quivering with frustration and rage.

Yesterday was a nightmare— both metaphorically and literally.

She got back home from Eunji's place, then got dragged through the mud by her mother for sleeping through her test, to the point where she even took away the books she had rented with her pocket money, and to top it off with a sweet little cherry, Y/N couldn't sleep all night because of a terrifying dream.

A dream that was connected to Dohwa.

The details were fuzzy, but they were still there, rigid and unmoving. An old telephone booth, a disappointed sigh when nobody picked up her call, purposeful strides across the tarmac of the streets, blinding car lights, widened eyes, a loud scream, then—

Boom. Nothing.

Y/N really hoped that this was a mere coincidence. That Dohwa's playful warning of 'checking both sides of the road before crossing' had no underlying meaning behind it. That all the loose ends she wasn't able to tie up right now were just mindless worries plaguing her overthinking mind.

If this never-ending string of agony was not enough to push Y/N to her limits, she was met with a pissed-off father waiting for her downstairs the very next morning. He was never the one to lecture her over anything, so it came off as quite a shock to the poor girl who was still recovering from the harsh sentences her mother had stabbed her with barely twenty-four hours ago.

Her seeking shelter at Eunji's house had proven to be more harmful than beneficial, unfortunately.

Now, her dad was trying to make up for the scolding by forcing her into a family picture with her mother and her cat, thinking that it would be alright if everyone simply pretended to forget about it. Usually, Y/N would play her part in this act too, because she didn't have the energy to put up with her parents' annoying attitude for another two days after a squabble.

Today, however... she was already on edge. The wound from her Mom's relentless screeching was fresh. The fear from the bone-chilling nightmare was fresh. The pain from her Dad's thirty-minute-long life lesson was fresh.

It all piled up into a giant ball of vexation. She needed to release her pent-up exasperation somewhere.

If not Eunji, then Dokja. If not Dokja, then Seojun. If not Seojun...

Then Dohwa.

She fiddled with her thumbs behind her back while her parents engaged themselves in a conversation, thinking of ways to sneak out without catching their watchful eye.

Placing her restless cat down, she quietly tiptoed to the backyard, her hands fishing into the pockets of her shorts to search for coins.

Y/N had plenty to spare, since she wouldn't be going out much anymore; thanks to the whole Maths exam fiasco that got her grounded during vacations. Life truly couldn't get any worse.

Without making any noise, she unlocked the backdoor and made a run for it. Instantly, the sun rays began their piercing assault, and she found herself squinting at her surroundings as sweat began to form all over her skin, the humidity baring its fangs within seconds of exposure to the huge summer sphere hanging above her.

"You better pick up, Dohwa."